The Owen Common Council held a special meeting on Thursday, September 26 to deal with an issue that came up in regard to the Owen water tower. It was planned to paint the interior this year and just pressure wash the exterior. DPW Chad Smith reported that Lane Tank is almost done with sandblasting the interior. They tried to pressure wash the exterior but the paint started peeling. If the paint peeled down to the primer, there would be no UV protection and rust would start to form. Lane Tank said even if they didn’t continue washing it, the exterior paint wouldn’t last another five years. It would cost $70,500 to paint the exterior now as the equipment is already here and they won’t have to sandblast it. Alderperson Ken Martine asked about a warranty on the work. Alderperson Bob Wilczek asked about the mold on the exterior of the tower. The reason is that it doesn’t get a lot of sun on that side. Alderperson Pam Jaffke asked if the water department should be paying for this. The response was yes. Smith said now is a good time to do it as Lane Tank is already here and the tower would have to be drained again if they came back to do it. The cost of pressure washing the exterior will no longer be part of the cost of $121,000 that was initially estimated. About $97,000 of that cost is being paid for with ARPA money. Alderperson John Mauel asked if the water department had any money set aside. Smith said no, but he would like to start doing this. Martine then asked about possible grants. Smith said that could only be done as part of a project. Alderperson Ray Kilty asked about going after a grant to paint the exterior of the tower and redo the water reservoir. Smith said if they wait and the tower rusts, the cost will be higher.

There were three possible options for paying for the project. Plan A was to use some money from the city budget that hadn’t been spent. Plan B was to use the money from Kerry if they paid their entire water bill. Plan C was to borrow the money from sewer and pay it back when they get their shared revenue. Wilczek pointed out they couldn’t do that as the shared revenue was already allocated in the budget. Martine asked if sewer would need to be paid back all at once. Wilczek said sewer is looking at a large fix with the standpipe and the Wastewater Treatment Plant is also going to need something done soon. Mayor Scott Jalling asked if they could budget to pay sewer back over five years. The council all agreed that the work should be done now. They voted to take it from the city budget and replenish it as the water department was able.

Kerry Ingredients delinquent water bill was also discussed. Mayor Jalling spoke to Brant Windham, the new Director of Manufacturing at Kerry. Although he still didn’t agree with the amount the auditors came up with for the bill, Windham wants to work with the city and offered to pay $1,660 a month for the next 18 months on top of the regular water bill. When they were checking Kerry also found a bill that had been missed and will be paying that shortly. That leaves a balance of about $31,500. The council counteroffered that Kerry pay $1,752.35 per month on top of their regular bill for the next 18 months. They will also be required to sign a written agreement.

DPW Smith said they have gone to a monthly billing so any errors can be caught faster. It was pointed out that Windham is fairly new at Kerry in Owen and that he is trying to work with the city. The council voted to have Kerry pay $1,752.35 plus their current water bill and allow Jalling to negotiate, if that number isn’t acceptable to Kerry. Subsequent to the meeting, Kerry agreed to the payment.

Jalling said he also talked to Windham about the ice skating rink warming shed needing to be redone and if Kerry wanted to donate it, a Kerry logo could be put on the side.